Bowlsby: 3 new bowl games in 2020 does not mean more bowls

By RALPH D. RUSSOJune 21, 2018

Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby says the NCAA approving three new bowls to begin play in 2020 does not guarantee the total number of postseason games will grow.

Bowlsby, who is also the chairman of the NCAA’s football oversight committee, appeared on the ”AP Top 25 College Football Podcast ” this week to discuss recent changes to rules regarding transfers, redshirting in football and the bowl system.

Bowlsby says no longer requiring athletes to request permission to transfer from a school is a significant and needed change, but he doubts the NCAA will ever adopt fully uniform transfer rules across all NCAA sports. He says allowing football players to play four games and still redshirt makes sense for coaches and players in a sport with high risk of injury.

As for the bowls, the NCAA approved the addition of three new games for the next postseason cycle of six years, starting 2020. But that doesn’t necessarily mean the total number of bowls, which was 39 last year, not including the College Football Playoff championship game will increase. By capping the number of bowls a conference can contract with according to the league’s four-year average of producing bowl-eligible teams, it could leave some bowls without conference partners — a risky position for game organizers.